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Among 

the 

Redwoods 




AMONG 
THE 

REDWOODS 



BY 
LILLIAN H. SHUEY 

Author of 

" California Sunshine." Veree. 

"Davidof Juniper Gulch." A novel. Chicago. 

" Don Luis' Wife." A romance. Boston. 

" The HumhoMt Lily." Verse. San Francisco. 



SAN FRANCISCO 

THE WHITAKER AND RAY COMPANY 

(INCOKPORATED) 

1901 



li 



THE LIBRARY OF 

CONGRESS, 
Two Copies Received 

JUN. 25 1901 

Copyright entry 

(!2lass<*^xxc n». 

COPY 3. 






Copyright, 1901 
By Lillian H. Shtjby 



Fob PBEMIS8I0N TO REPUBLISH THESE VERSES, THANKS ARE 

DUE The Ovhelaitd Monthly, The Youth's Companion, The 
Traveler, Sports Afield, and The Pacific Rural Press. 



DEDICATED 

WITHOUT PERMISSION 
TO THE 

OFFICEES OF THE SEMPERVIRENS CLUB 



THE NUMBERS. 

Page 

I. Mendocino 9 

II. In the Redwood Canons 10 

III. That Chaemed Life 11 

IV. Coast Trees of Northern California 12 

V. In Humboldt 16 

VI. By Stage in Mendocino 18 

VII. Sweet Companionship 20 

VIII. A Lily of the Redwoods 21 

IX. The Rhododendron 22 

X. Cliff Flowers 23 

XI. The Clintonia 24 

XII. The Perfumed Valleys of the Pacific 25 

XIII. The Rainy Matole 26 

XIV. The Coast Robin 29 

XV. The Sequoias 31 

XVI. San Francisco Bay 36 

XVII. Haywards 37 

XVIII. The Observatory on Mount Hamilton 41 

XIX. At a Country Inn 42 



— 7 — 



THE BIG TREE OF CALIFORNIA 
IS THE SEQUOIA GIGANTEA. IT 
GROWS ONLY IN THE SIERRA NE- 
VADA MOUNTAINS. THESE TREES 
ARE OFTEN 320 FEET HIGH AND 
30 FEET IN DIAMETER. THE TALL- 
EST BIG TREE IS 405 FEET HIGH. 
THE GREATEST BASE CIRCUMFER- 
ENCE IS ABOUT 110 FEET. THE 
AGE OF THESE TREES IS ESTIMATED 
TO BE FROM THREE THOUSAND TO 
FIVE THOUSAND YEARS. 

THE SEQUOIA SEMPERVIRENS IS 
THE REDWOOD OF COMMERCE. THIS 
FOREST EXTENDS ALONG A NARROW 
STRIP OF THE COAST RANGE, WHERE 
EXPOSED TO THE FOG, FROM MON- 
TEREY TO THE OREGON LINE. MANY 
OF THESE ROYAL TREES WERE CON- 
TEMPORARY WITH RAMESES AND 
THE BUILDERS OF BABYLON. 

NEARLY ALL OF CALIFORNIA'S 
GRAND FORESTS, EXCEPTING THE 
SMALL NATIONAL PARK RESERVA- 
TIONS, ARE THREATENED WITH 
DESTRUCTION. 



AMONG 

THE REDWOODS. 

BY 

LILLIAN H. vSHUEY. 



MENDOCINO. 

A VAST cathedral by the western sea, 

Whose spires God set in majesty on high, 

Peak after peak of forests to the sky, 
Blended in one vast roof of greenery. 
The nave, a river broadening to the sea ; 

The aisles, deep canons of eternal build ; 

The transepts, valleys with God's splendor filled ; 
The shrines, white waterfalls in leaf -laced drapery. 

The choir stands westward by the sounding shore ; 

The cliffs like beetling pipes set high in air ; 

Roll from the beach the thunders crashing there ; 
The high wind-voices chord the breakers' roar ; 

And wondrous harmonies of praise and prayer 
Swell to the forest altars evermore. 



->9 



Among 

The Redwoods 



II. 
IN THE REDWOOD CANONS. 

Down in the redwood canons cool and deep, 

The shadows of the forest ever sleep ; 
The odorous redwoods, wet with fog and dew. 

Touch with the bay and mingle with the yew. 
Under the firs the red madrona shines. 

The graceful tan-oaks, fairest of them all, 
Lean lovingly unto the sturdy pines, 

In whose far tops the birds of passage call. 

Here, where the forest shadows ever sleep. 
The mountain-lily lifts its chalice white ; 
The myriad ferns hang draperies soft and white 

Thick on each mossy bank and watered steep, 
Where slender deer tread softly in the night, — 

Down in the redwood canons dark and deep. 



— 10 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



III. 
THAT CHARMED LIFE. 

I LOVE that Ufe, that charmed, simple life, 
The poets lived beside the English lakes ; 

That, if one page of Wordsworth speak to me, 
The singing spirit of my soul awakes. 

My soul calls unto them. Though flatterers come, 
Though crowds pass by and mark my rich estate, — 

New friends call often, heap regrets by mail, — 
Yet on some grassy knoll old friends await. 

Old friends await, — the great, immortal ones, 
Who sing the love of field and tangled wood. 

Of beasts, and singing birds, and murmuring bees, 
And all God's works, that He himself called good. 

There is a hope that, somehow, through the din 
My heart will keep its love for mountain lakes, 

For wildwood walks, and those free, gladdening thoughts 
That nature's beauty in the soul awakes. 



11 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



IV. 

COAST TREES OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. 

I AM the redwood tree. 

By the cliff-bound western sea 

I rear my temples green, 

Leaving space between 

My evergreen boughs for the royal red madrone, 

The fir with fragrant cone, 

And the slender chestnut-oak, — 

That graceful tree beloved by the fairy folk, 

Who dance on the needles brown. 

Where the soft light flickers down 

From my spires that touch the sky. 

Up on the summits high, 

Down in the canon grand, 

My shadowy temples stand. 

I am the redwood tree. 

By the cliff-bound western sea. 

I AM the chestnut-oak, 
Beloved by the fairy folk, — 
Tan-oak they call me most 
On the wooded western coast. 
Slender and light I 'm made, 
To grow in the redwood shade, 
Till the forest vandals roam 
To hew me down in my home. 

— 12 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 

My bark they carry away, 
Leaving me stripped and gray, 
Till the ferns and flowers and brake 
My funeral canopy make. 
When my sap runs up in the spring. 
The vandal axes ring. 
I am the chestnut-oak, 
Mourned by the fairy folk. 

I AM the beautiful yew. 

Beloved by the rain and the dew. 

My low, dense boughs I fling 

Over the trickling spring, 

Where the misty wind of the west 

Is cool from the ocean's breast ; 

And the caiion is dear to me, 

That is white with the fog of the sea. 

My leaves like the redwood's seem ; 

But you see, not cones, but the gleam 

Of berries small and red ; 

And instead 

Of towering up to the sun, 

I lean with the laurel sweet where the ferny rivers run. 

I am the beautiful yew, 

Beloved of the fog and the dew. 

I AM the royal madrone, 
Peerless I stand, and alone. 
In my wonderful sheen and glow. 
Red as the wines that grow 



13 



Among 

The Redwoods 

In the valleys wide and still 

Is the tint of my bark in the forest greens on the hill. 

And my trunk is smooth to the touch, 

Like a pohshed cane or crutch. 

My leaf is a rich, dark green, 

With a beautiful finish and sheen. 

I live in the forest cool, 

By the springlet's grassy pool. 

And the mountain side I keep. 

Where the long fir shadows sleep. 

I am the royal madrone. 

Peerless I stand, and alone. 

I AM the fir tree tall. 

The redwood and I rule over them all. 

High overhead, our tops pierce through 

Into the sunlight and the blue. 

I can see the ships on the ocean's plain; 

I can see the clouds roll up the rain; 

I can see the north sea-fog come down 

Over the harbor and the town, 

Then through the forest slowly creep 

Up and over the mountain steep. 

When on the summit's height I stand, 

Many a mile I look inland. 

Where through the forests the rivers flow. 

And down to the wide, warm valleys go. 

I am the fir tree tall; 

The redwood and I rule over them all. 



— 14 



Among 

The Redtooods 

The alder, the elder, the dogwood, the spicy laurel tree, 

Lovers of creeks are we. 

The sportsman knows us well, 

Crowding his way through the dell, 

To cast his hook in the stream, 

Where the foamy ripples gleam; 

And he tangles his pole and line 

With many a twine 

In the lowering boughs we spread 

Over his careless head. 

The hunter marks the place 

Where we part a little space. 

For down to the clear pool's ferny brink 

The deer will come at the dawn to drink. 

The alder, the elder, the dogwood, the flourishing green 

bay tree, — 
Lovers of creeks are we. 



-15 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



V. 
IN HUMBOLDT. 

The breath of the sea and the cypress, — 

A misty and pungent air ; 
Shadows of tall trees bending 

Into the bright sea-glare. 

The white spray washing the headlands, 
The white gulls wheeling home, 

Dipping their wings in the breakers. 
And treading the swift sea-foam. 

High cliffs on the edge of forests. 

Rugged and bare and steep, 
Whence the hunted deer, despairing, 

Leaps to the roaring deep. 

On the edge of the cliffs, the forests. 
Up, up to the mountains high ! 

Down in the valleys descending, 
And rising again to the sky. 

Sohtudes, — lost to the woodman, 

Far on the summits bright. 
Or down in the trackless caiions. 

Dim in the noonday light, — 



-16 



Among 

The Redwoods 



Dim in the noonday fullness, 
Dark in the day's sweet morn, — 

So sacred and deep are the canons, 
Where the beautiful rivers are born. 

V/onderful forests unbroken. 
The cloud-kissed peaks upon, 

That swell to the sunburnt valleys 
And roll to the Oregon. 

Shadowy roads winding upward, 

Through the silences solemnly sweet. 

So tenderly thrilled when the warbler 
Sings in his sure retreat. 

Breath of the sea and the cypress, — 

A misty and pungent air ; 
Sea- voices that seek the forests 

To hush into silent prayer. 



— 17 — 



Among 

Thf. Redwoods 



VI. 
BY STAGE IN MENDOCINO. 

Winding the rocky ridges, up we go, — 
Above the hay-sweet valleys far below ; 

Above the dusty town, the long, straight lane. 
The trim, stiff gardens, and square fields of grain. 

Eirst, on the point above the bosky dell, 
The scrub-oaks, and the dense, low chaparral. 

The wheels and horseshoes on the rocky grade 
Keep clinking-clanking 'neath the oak's dark shade. 

Then, on the heights, amid the winds, cool-blown, 
The springtime splendor of the red madrone. 

I reach, and grasp a spray that comes in view, — 
Sweet waxen bells with stores of honeyed dew. 

Fair as the roadside flowers in sunny spots, 
The Trientalis and forget-me-nots. 

And now we reach the caiion's dusky ways, — 
The mingled shade of redwood and dark bays. 

— 18 — 



A mong 

The Redwoods 

The gray tree-squirrel springs across the road 
And climbs a fir tree to his high abode. 

And now the solitude grows dark and still, 
Save for the trickling of the roadside rill. 

The ferns climb up the bank ; a scent of musk 
Comes from the tangles in the under-dusk. 

And now again to upper light we swing, 
Startling the wood-thrush in his caroling. 

A winding way. And there, below, we see 
The long, white buildings of our hostelry. 



19 



Among 

The Redwoods 



VII. 
SWEET COMPANIONSHIP. 

I TREAD the bosky path beside the sea, 
Alone, — yet not alone; for at my feet 
The glad flowers press with speaking faces sweet, 

To tell their names and histories to me. 

All else in hostile guise seems moved to be: — 
Harsh cries of gulls; the low waves' sullen beat; 
The wind, that tries its voicings incomplete; 

The fog, that comes in chill monotony. 

The pimpernel, where tangled violets grow. 

Whispers of English Maud; loved Wordsworth knew 
That tall-spired foxglove with its bells of blue. 
Their old romance the bleeding-hearts confess. 
Would that life's friends to me might always show 
Such sweet companionship, such friendliness. 



20 



Among 

The Redwoods 



VIII. 
A LILY OF THE REDWOODS. 

Tall on her slender stem the lily grows, 
The princess royal of that vast domain 

Where great sequoias stand in kingly rows, 
Defying summer wind and winter rain, 

Close-wrapped in long and mantling drapery; 
Where cluster firs and pines in noble group. 
Where up the steeps the oaks and laurels troop, 

And bright madrones, a courtly company. 

Proud in her slender grace among them all, 
On her white robes the loving sunbeams fall; 

As well becomes a princess such as she, 
The love-lorn winds but gentle nods obtain; 
The plumed grasses worship in her train; 

And 'round her rings in praise the forest minstrelsy. 



— 21 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



IX. 
THE RHODODENDRON. 

In Mendocino, where dense forests grow, 
The rhododendron lifts its clusters bright. 
Soft gleams of radiance in the solemn light 

Of shadowy aisles. In dim cathedral arches, so 

Gleam out the faces our devotions know; 

Nor in Saint Mary's face more beauties speak, 
Or live in softness on her waxen cheek. 

Than in these pink-hued clusters sweetly glow . 

When first I saw this fair, bright-flowering saint. 
Sweet to my soul came its beatitude; 
My heart its gracious mission understood; 
And while I breathed the forest incense faint, 
I laid before the shrine my heart's complaint, 
And bowed for blessing in the silent wood. 



22 



Among 

The Redwoods 



X. 

CLIFF-FLOWERS. 

On Humboldt's rocky coast, where mountains steep 
Rise from the foamy beach, the crags and towers 
Are oft the fated homes of brilliant flowers, 

That clasp the scanty soil, where fierce winds sweep. 

The hardy lupine like a purple cloud 

Spreads with a softening haze each seam and scar; 
The columbine hangs there, a scarlet star; 

The daffodils and dainty asters crowd; 

And sweet wild roses 'mid the chill fogs twine. 
So we, how oft, unfostered must remain 

In some rude spot, our faculties divine, 

If f«lt, awakened, awed by force malign; 
And not so much life's purpose we attain 
As do the brave cliff-flowers 'mid the rain. 



23 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XI. 
THE CLINTONIA. 

In California, where the redwoods grow, 

The tall Clintonia stands, — a stately sight,. 

Shedding in ferny ways its scarlet light, — 
A lily in red robes, as if to show 
A life more royal than pale hlies know. 

The brooding firs, through winter's fog and gloom, 

Dream of the time when these bright torches bloom. 
This flower of cheer was loved by great Thoreau, 

Through Maine's dark pines and lakeside greenery; 

By our beloved Thoreau, ordained to be 
A priest to lead us to God's temples grand, 

Whereon the wonders of His skill are spent. 
Fairest of these, the tall Clintonias stand, 

The altar-candles of a continent. 



— 24 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XII. 

THE PERFUMED VALLEYS OF THE PACIFIC. 

Come, breathe th' aroma of these blossoming vales, 
These perfumed valleys by the western sea. 

Here, Care forgets, and Sorrow sleeps and fails, 
Amid the drowsy poppies on the lea; 

On tinted hills the fragrant orchards bloom ; 

The heaped-up fruits are summer's odorous care ; 
The pungent orange scents the winter air, 

And sweet my lady's garden with perfume, 

Where bees in honeyed depths themselves entomb. 
Come, breathe the soft, salt breezes from the bay, 
And mountain zephyrs, redolent alway 

With cypress, laurel, and wild, musky bloom. 
As wondrous sweet as fabled Araby, 
These perfumed valleys by the western sea ! 



25 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XIII. 

THE RAINY MATOLE. 

I 'vE a love for the meadows, the woodlands, the streams, 
Surpassing my love for life's follies and dreams; 
But a tremor and awe frets my worshiping soul 
From the passing of death, life's mysterious breath, 
That impregnates the whole. 

Where the forests of Humboldt chmb down to the sea, 
Mount to dim summits, or spread to the lea. 
Where long-lingering showers their wide cohorts roll, 
There 's an idyllic stream, where the forest gods dream, 
Called "The Rainy Matole." 

Through the forests of fir, through the forests of fern. 
Through the laurels that over the mossy rocks yearn, 
Through mysterious shades that send awe to the soul, 
Through the willows that weep, where clear pools lie 
asleep. 

Winds the wooded Matole. 

'Neath the bracken and brush, round the vine-covered 

mound, 
Creeps the varmint unseen, falls the step without sound; 
There the slow-footed bear makes his lonely patrol, 
And the deer on the steep their cool coverts keep 
On the quiet Matole. 

— 26 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 

To the redwoods, tall-masted, the wild pigeons come, 
Where the gray squirrel rattles his far-distant drum, 
And a myriad wee warblers their silver notes roll. 
With the wren in the brush, with the shy, russet thrush, 
On the rainy Matole. 

There 's a road winding down through the low- skirted 

yews, 
Where the mountain-balm yields you its sacred, sweet 

dews. 
While the blue jay salutes you as if to take toll, 
And the blossoming thorn lends perfume to the morn 
On the flowery Matole. 

There 's a lily as red as the royal red rose, 
There 's a lily whose robes in pale beauty unclose ; 
The tall rhododendrons their gay bells unroll, 
While the dogwood throws wide its white bloom as the 
bride 

Of the shaded Matole. 

Where the trees stand apart, and the sunlight falls 

clear, 
Stands the wrecked cabin home of the old pioneer; 
Blooming vines clamber in, birds and bees have control. 
Though deserted and chill, love abides with it still. 
On the lonely Matole. 

There 's a rose by the hedge, gone astray in the wild, 
With the common mint tangles and brake reconciled, 

— 27 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 

And, a part of the shade, sunshine, showers, — the 

whole, — 
Humming-birds dart and float, emerald-winged, ruby 

throat, 

Up and down the Matole. 

A friend once was mine, gentle-eyed as a seer ; 
One long day was our own by that stream flowing clear. 
She unrolled to my vision her life's perfect scroll, 
As we walked with the flowers and the fleeting June 
showers, 

On the rippling Matole. 

Lizette ! if but once from the ultimate tide 

You could come with Death's truth on your lips un- 

belied, 
One sweet moment with you would be years to my soul. 
Such a tryst might we keep by some lily-lit steep 
On beloved Matole. 



— 28 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XIV. 

THE COAST ROBIN. 

The prince of Coast singers is startling my ear; 
He 's vaulting out, whistling out, loudly and clear, 
His wonderful, jubilant, triumphant cheer. 

I see his gold breast as he lights in the lane, 
The satiny black of his head in the grain, 
The flash of his wings overhead in the rain. 

So weary am I of the showers in June, 

With summer's soft harmonies all out of tune, 

And the winds wailing out an old wintery rune. 

He cares not, — so busy, so restless, is he, 
There, flipping the drops from his gay panoply. 
With a double-quick step in the damp filaree. 

Now he 's gone to a place in the green alder tree ; 
"Cavello, cavello," — "sweet, sweeter," — says he. 
He translates no further his wild jubilee. 

"Cavello, cavello," so seems he to say, — 
A rollicking, musical, clear roundelay, 
Vaulted out in a daring, undalliant way. 



29 



Among 

The Redwoods 

He 's flown now, down to a cliff by the shore. 
The swells may boom loudly, the surf deeply roar, 
He '11 be jubilant over them, — singing his score. 

Faintly now, echoing up in the glen, 

He 's calling the warbler, the blue-bird, the wren, 

To come to him, come to him, meet him again. 

I like him, I like him, gay Prince of the West ! 
He calls up what gladness my heart ere possessed, 
I ne'er shall grow old where he makes his dear nest. 

In singing my heart so out of its ills, 

He has sung the June sunshine back to the hills. 

And summer her old golden promise fulfills. 

Come hither, come hither, cowed, troubled of men, 

Come, follow my whistler into the glen, 

Strike the plow to the hills and grow valiant again. 



30 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XV. 
THE SEQUOIAS. 

I WALKED in the long, dark shadows 
Of the redwoods dense and tall, — 

They whose arms interlock like brothers, 
The kingliest tree of all. 

There stood the pinnacled forest, 

Planted long ages ago. 
Old as the lakes and the valleys, 

Father of rivers and snow. 

Around were the scents of the laurel. 
The cypress, and fir-balm sweet, — 

The oil of the cedar of Lebanon, 
The yarrow, and mint at my feet. 

The far-shaken branches were keeping 
The service and sound of a psalm. 

How blest was the place to my senses, 
Its beauty, and coolness, and calm ! 

Red lilies shone out in the shadows 
Like lamps in recesses alight, 

While the candles unburnt on the altars 
Were the sacred sweet lilies of white. 



— 31 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



Far down through the pahny arches 
The wreaths of the satyrs glanced, 

As these creatures of olden fancies 
In the checkered sunbeams danced. 

Here flitted the pale mist-maidens, 
From their vestal bowers set free, 

Pursued by the swift-winged zephyrs 
To their home in the cloudy sea. 

From the tangles of vines and mosses 
There came the low voices of rills, 

Whispering of corn in the valleys. 
Of grasses and vines on the hills. 

I thought of the luscious red berries, 
The nuts of the hazel and pine, 

Of travelers through thickets and forests. 
Who sought for these bounties divine. 

I followed the deep-pooled caiion 

Till its stream with the river's blent. 

To the rude cabin-home of the woodsman, 
To the hunter's white-walled tent. 

Here with the wondering children 
I sought for the spikenard rare. 

The angelica root, and the ginsing, 
And the orchid strangely fair. 



32- 



Among 

The Redwoods 



From his home in a fruited elder, 

A flame-crowned oriole sang, 
And the hermit- thrush in the distance 

His rapturous melody rang. 

As I passed from the sheltering forest, 

The spirit of Time's lost morn 
Came, and commingled its stories 

With the legends of j^ears unborn. 

* * * 

Twice, thrice, did the white thorn blossom 
Ere again I returned to that scene; 

World-wounded, all eager, I sought for 
My canon's cool chamber of green. 

* * * 

But where were the mantled warders. 

Majestic and silent all. 
That kept the courts of the rivers 

And the sweet- voiced waterfall? 

I saw but a pile of corpses 

Where the woful battle had been 

Between the lords of the forest 
And the myrmidon sons of men. 

There lay the forms dishonored. 

Lifeless, and black and bare; 
And the lilies like funeral flowers 

Were burnt in the sun's fierce glare. 

^■''^'- -33- 



Am,ong 

The Redwoods 



The bowlders were hot and barren, 
The river lay dry in its bed, 

And the wind through the wasted canons 
Kept moaning a plaint for the dead. 

There were no rapturous arias 
Love's passionate strain to tell, 

For the minstrels had fled affrighted 
When the foremost chieftain fell. 

Down the long ways of the river, 
Where Beauty her bowers had kept, 

Lay the sullen pools, and the driftwood, 
Where the deluge of floods had swept. 

And lashed by the blasts of December 
And the withering winds of June, 

The stark and dust-blown summits 
Looked up to the day's dim moon. 



No more in his love, Old Forest, 
Will the poet find thy ways. 

Or the children bring thee gladness 
In the beauty of their days. 

The cathedral is gone, and the fortress; 

The fields cry out in vain ; 
And the hosts of want and hunger 

Will tent on the desolate plain. 



— 34 



Among 

The Redwoods 

Thou art weighed and wanting, O Nation, 
The writing is seen on the wall! 

With the scepter and crown of the forest 
The kingdoms of men will fall. 



35 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XVI. 
SAN FRANCISCO BAY. 

THE COURT OF THE QUEEN. 

A GRACIOUS queen gives court to all the world: 
Fair California, with her robes rolled down 
The unmeasured valleys; her regal crown, 

The emerald forests with white lakes impearled; 

Her court, yon bay, with curtaining clouds o'ercurled; 
The door, the Golden Gate of old renown; 
While round the court the guarding mountains 
frown. 

And ne'er through them the hostile winds are hurled. 

The towering peaks as sentinels are seen; 

Two cities fair, as maids of honor stand ; 
The bristling forts are knights of warlike mien ; 

The ships are courtiers sent from every land, 
To sue the favor of the gracious queen, 

And wait in stately place to kiss her hand. 



36 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XVII. 
HAYWARDS. 

I CAME to Haywards once, 
When the sweet summer wore her yellow gown'; 
And in the mottled shade of orchards trim, 
The weary trees their luscious loads lay down. 
How like a dream, I saw thee, pleasant town, 
Wrapped in thy warm, enfolding summer air, 
Lifting gray walls about thy fruited groves, 

As in a garden fair! 

I thought of that old poem, 
Where once a Peri stood disconsolate, 
And envious saw the lights of Eden glowing. 
And heard the music through the barred gate; 
And like the Peri I could drop a tear 
To know my feet another path must trace; 
And though to gain the groves of earth and sea, 

To lose this glorious place. 

What must it be to live 
Where beauty's soul upon the wind is free ! 
The roads are avenues, the lanes are bowers. 
And orchards sweep the landscape to the sea; 
The spicy laurels in the caiions sway, 



37 



Among 

The Redwoods 

The sturdy oaks, in a procession slow, 
Come down the steep, their frailer friends to greet. 
That in cool gardens grow. 

I walked in gardens here; 
With gladdened feet the velvet lawns I pressed; 
I cooled my finger-tips in pansy-beds, 
And pinned the white camellia to my breast; 
I saw the roses clambering to the eaves. 
The asters, lilies, in a royal row; 
And then my heart in lighter mood forgot 

Its weariness to know. 

Adown the long, cool streets, 
On wings of wind the bright bicycle flies, 
Whose valiant knight astride will dangers dare 
To win approval from some sparkhng eyes ; 
Or, better still, his winged steed he halts, 
And leans it idly in some shady place, 
To tread the courtly square where tennis reigns, 

His lady's cause to grace. 

The oriole sings here; 
The plain brown thrush we call the mocking-bird 
Comes shyly from the hills his praise to sing, 
In dewy hedges in the twilight heard ; 
And the gay lark, with breast of velvet-gold, 
Who seeks the mountains in the dusty fall, 
Loves these deep groves too well, and, lingering. 

Leaves them not at all. 



38 



Among 

The Redwoods 

How pleasant are these hills, 
Dropped gently down unto the cooling west ! 
On whose long slopes the fragrant piles of hay- 
In misty, castellated turrets rest. 
And in the long, last hours of afternoon, 
The crimson torches of the setting sun 
Point out those distant peaks to touch them all 

With splendor, one by one. 

How swift the evening comes ! 
The gold and crimson fades to tender gray, 
And through the orchard shadows long and still 
The laborers, joking, take their homeward way; 
The farmer, whistling, notes the day's outcome, 
The packing-house is locked and left alone. 
And, whistling still, he takes his horse and cart 

And hurries home. 

Perchance in some great house, 
Or yon fair cottage on the pleasant hill, 
You '11 find some childhood friend grown gently old, 
With all that life affords brought to his will ; 
His cattle crowded in the seaward fields, 
His garden-places on the upward lea, 
The sweetheart of his youth his gracious wife. 

Fair children on his knee. 

O new and happy land ! 
No "Locksley Hall" tells here its tale of woe; 
No "dreadful hollows by the little wood'^ 



39 



Among 

The Redwoods 

Renew the tears that fain would cease to flow. 
There is no need, in this exultant clime, 
That wounded lives "drag on with broken wing"; 
High hope is in the air, and troubled hearts 
Find strength to rise and sing. 

Once on a summer day, 
As in a dream, I saw thee, pleasant town; 
I saw thy spires to generous heaven arise; 
I saw thy charms, that bring thee great renown; 
I saw thy clustered homes in sweet content; 
And still I see that deep blue tremulous air 
Lifting gray walls about thy fruited groves. 

As in a garden fair. 



40 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XVIII. 
THE OBSERVATORY ON MOUNT HAMILTON. 

I SAW those amber, cloud-like hills to-day, — 
Those blue-veiled mountains east of San Jose. 

When first upon my sight they sprung 

Above the fair, green valley hung, 
They seemed unto my dumb surprise 
Like some old amber walls of paradise. 
That, long forgotten since that fabled time, 
Were now piled up to keep a fairer clime. 

Wrapped in pale azure, near yet dim, 

And tinted with pure tones that rim 
The sunset clouds, with purple deeps, and old 
Dull ambers, and high lights of sunny gold : — 

And so up-piled, this paradise they keep ; 

For on yon peak against the cloudless sky 
The guarding eye of Science reads the deep, • 

The starry paths where vengeful demons fly. 



41 — 



Among 

The Redwoods 



XIX. 

AT A COUNTRY INN. 

One morn, awak'ning at an inn, I heard 

Familiar sounds, such as in days gone by 
Came daily to my ear; — the cock's long cry, 
The twittering matin of an orchard-bird, 
A pigeon's coo, a clucking hen, deterred 

By dallying brood, th' alarm of dogs that try 
Some undisturbed pedestrian to defy; 
Then jars, and hasting steps, as some one stirred 
To early toil. And suddenly, how sweet 
It was to lie so still, to seem to be 
In dear old scenes of precious memory! 
And save for sudden tears, that would not stay, 
A nobler courage came my care to meet, 
And, comforted, I rose and went my way. 



— 42 



The Western Series of Readers 

EDITED BV HARR V4AGNER 

Designed ^specially for Supplementary Work in 

HISTORY AND NATURE STUDY 

In Our Public Schools 

All Fully and Beautifully Illustrated. lEIach Volume Contains from 
:^ighteen to Twenty-Six Full-Page Pictures. 

EXTENSIVELY ADOPTED AND USED IN THE SCHOOLS OF THE PACIFIC COAST 



VOL. I 

PACIFIC HISTORY STORIES 

By HARR WAGNER 

FoF Fourth and Fifth Grades 

During the short time that this book has been on the market its 
sale has been phenomenal. It is pronounced, by all of our leading 
educators, to be excellently adapted to the work for which it was 
intended— a supplementary reader in history study in the Fourth 
and Fifth Grades. Fully two thirds of the counties in California 
have this book on their supplementary and library list. 

VOL. M 

PACIFIC NATURE STORIES 

By HARR WAGNER and DAVID S. JORDAN and others 

For Fourth and Fifth Grades 

A companion volume to the above. It contains some eighteen most 
interesting and instructive sketches of our Western animal and 
vegetable life, all told in a delightfully flowing style and written by 
the greatest educators of the West. As a reading book in nature 
study it cannot be excelled. 



VOL. IN 



NATURE STORIES OF THE NORTHWEST 

By HERBERT BASHFORD 

State I<ibrarian of Washington 

For Sixth and Seventh Grades 

This book covers a more extended field than Volume II, and is not 
strictly confined to the Northwest. Among the interesting stories 
will be found those of The Black Bear, The Kingfisher, The Clam, 
The Meadowlark, The Seals, etc., all of which are of interest to any 
pupil in the West. The illustrations are works of art and true to 
nature. 



VOL. IV 

TALES OF DISCOVERY ON THE PACIHC SLOPE 

By MARGARET GRAHAM HOOD 

Fop Third and Fourth Grades 

The Tale of History could not be more charmingly told than it is in 
this volume, which is intended for the lower grades, A Third or 
Fourth Grade pupil will read it easily, and with interest. Its eight 
chapters are devoted to the early history of our great Western 
empire, and tell of characters and events, but little touched upon by 
the general school history. The child here acquires a taste that 
leads him to further research. 



VOL. V- 



TALES OF OUR NEW POSSESSIONS, THE PHILIPPINES 

Written by R. VAN BERGEN 

A Thirty -Year resident of the Orient 
Author of "Story of Japan," Etc. 

Illustrated by P. N. BOERINGER 

War Artist Correspondent at Manila 
for San Francisco Papers 

For the Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Grades 

A timely book for the young. We employed to write this volume 
a man whose thirty-year residence in the Orient made htm 
thoroughly familiar with the people and their customs. Its thirty- 
eight chapters, all richly illustrated by the best artist we could secure, 
will give the pupil an excellent idea of our new country — 
a knowledge which will prove of great financial value to him. 

VOL. VI 



STORIES OF OUR MOTHER EARTH 

By HAROLD W. FAIRBANKS, Ph. D. 

Illustrated by MARY H. WELLMAN 

With 27 Full Page Illustrations. An Intensely In- 
teresting and Instructive Work on Nature Study 

For the Sixth and Seventh Grades 

Can the iscudy of Geology be made interesting to the young? It 
certainly can when written in the style of this book. It contains 
some thirty-eight chapters, every one laden with knowledge but all 
reading like a story book. The chapters on T/ie Yosemite Valley, 
The San Francisco Bay and The Colorado River in themselves alone 
warrant the purchase of the book. 

Complete Descriptive Circular, giving contents of each volume, 
testimonials, etc., sent on application. 

PRICES— School Edition, Bound in Board, I^eather Back, Net 50 cents 

lyibrary Edition, Bound in Cloth, Net 60 cents 

"~ PUBI-ISHED BY 

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Including— 

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Price, Library Edition, postpaid I2.50 

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BY DAVID STARR JORDAN 

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^'CARE AND CULTURE OF MEN'^ 

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An Allegory of the Fur Seal. Profusely Illustrated 

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And Other Sketches. Illustrated 

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One Set of Jordan, 3 Vols, in box, half Levant, postpaid. 10.00 
MISCELLANEOUS LIBRARY BOOKS 

Sugar Pine Murmupings, by Eliz. S. Wilson $1 00 

Adventures of a Tenderfoot, by H. H. Sauber 1 00 

The Main Points, by Rev. C.R. Brown 1 25 

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Lyrics of the Golden West, by Rev. w. D.Crabb 1 00 

SongSOf Paget Sea, by Herbert Bashford 100 

Dr. Jones' Pienie, by Dr. S. B)^ Chapman 1 00 

A Modern Argonaut, by Leela B. Davis 1 00 

Percy or the Four Inseparables, by M. Lee 1 00 

Personal Impressions of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado 1 50 

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Study of the Kindergarten Problem, by Fred'k i,. Burk 50 

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Toyon— A book of Holiday Selections, by Allie M. Felker . . , 

Paper, 35c. Board, 60c. Cloth 100 

Supplement to State History, by Harr Wagner. 25 

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(Schooled) 75 

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WESTERN SERIES OF PAPER BOOKS 

No. 1. Songs of the Soul, by Joaquin Miller 25 

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No. 3. Modern Argonaut, by I,eela B. Davis 25 

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Paper, 25c. Board , 40 

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W. Graham , , 25 

No. 3. Grammap by the Inductive Method, by w. C. Doub., 25 



July- 6. hf^l 



JUN 25 1901 



5?^?/.^;i&^ 



-*''P-> . ;,'! 



i-»' S»< - 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




